Friday, January 1, 2010

On the last eve of the last decade, we attended our friend Charlotte's and her new husband David's charming wedding. The ceremony setting was a small chapel on the William Jewell campus. The evening was crisp and crystal clear and the sun was setting as we entered the chapel. It was a lovely and simple ceremony. Our girl Jenny led the proceedings and it was her first officiating gig....she aced it. Char looked beautiful and was outright giddy the whole evening. As we sat in the pews waiting for the ceremony to begin, we fell into a hysterically inappropriate conversation led by the imcomparable Jane Durr. Sitting directly behind some of Charlotte's family members, the featured dialogue was,"At the Margaret Sanger clinic in New York, EVERYONE got a diaphragm!" Despite our attempts to subvert, the ceremony was perfection. Many a happy tear was shed. Our co-worker Drew and his girlfriend arrived just in time to run into Charlotte and David as they were departing the sanctuary. As we all departed the chapel, the sunset had given way to a brilliantly beautiful full moon. The moon was in fact a rare blue moon. How fitting.

The reception was at the Hilton and was great fun. The food was highlighted by a made-to-order pasta station with some excellent ingredients. Mine featured sun-dried tomatoes, fresh garlic, yellow and red peppers and a blend of a hearty marinara and a five-cheese sauce. The silver wedding cake and a host of wedding cookies and treats were offered for dessert(the iced peanut butter cookies were...like, holy cow good). Dinner inevitably gave way to the usual suspects of wedding dances(Cha-Cha slide...c'mon, it's the cha-cha slide!). The only snafu came when a portion of the head table collapsed with a kid underneath. The kid was completely unfazed and the table quickly fixed. Dancing resumed and the party carried on. The evening ended on a bittersweet note. As we left and bid Charlotte and David farewell, I realized I'd almost forgotten that we were actually saying goodbye to her...she would soon be moving to Wyoming. Char, I hope you and David have all the happiness you can stand....and then some.

We were home before the clock struck midnight. I was actually quite happy to share the moment with Keith...quietly and at peace.

Happy New Year, friends. May the new decade bring many peaceful moments to all of us.